Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume I.djvu/259

 ALACIIUA ALAMANCE 235 extensively wrought into boxes and pots for pre- ! cious ointments and perfumes. A white granu- lar gypsum, pure and in sound blocks, is quarried in Siena and in other places in Tuscany, and manufactured in Florence, Leghorn, Milan, and Volterra, into utensils similar to those used of old, as well as into vases, lamps, clock stands, &c. They are exported from these places in considerable quantity to the United States. The composition of this alabaster is 46 '3 per cent, sulphuric acid, 32*9 lime, and 20-8 water. Its hardness is 1*5-2 of the mineralogical scale. It soon tarnishes on exposure to the air, and is easily injured by dust and smoke. Articles made of it should be kept under a glass cover. AI.ACIIl'A, a county of Florida, in the N. part of the peninsula, bounded N. by the Santa Fe river and W. by the Suwanee ; area, 1,000 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 17,328, of whom 12,393 were colored. Orange lake lies partly within its limits. The surface is rolling prairie and the soil is fertile. The productions in 1870 were 168,580 bushels of corn, 8,450 of oats, 18,264 of potatoes, 2,477 bales of cotton, 58 hhds. of sugar, and 22,906 gallons of molasses. The Florida railroad passes through the county. Capital, Gainesville. ALACOQUE, Marguerite Marie, a French nun, to whom the festival of the Sacred Heart of Je- sus owes its origin, born at Lauthecour, dio- cese of Autun, July 12, 1647, died Oct. 17, 1690. She took the veil in the Visitation con- vent of Paray-le-Monial, where, according to her biographers, she displayed the gifts of mir- acles, of prophecy, of revelations, and direct intercourse with God and his angels. She predicted the day of her own death, and ex- perienced ineffable pleasure while engraving the name of Jesus Christ on her bosom with a penknife. She left a treatise on La devotion au ccRur de Jesus, which she believed to em- body a supernatural communication. The church gives her the title of venerable. ALA DAGH. I. A lofty mountain chain in Asiatic Turkey, on the northerly side of which the eastern Euphrates takes its rise. Its main portion is situated on the N. edge of the basin of Lake Van, between lat. 39 and 40 N"., and Ion. 42 and 44 E., and forms part of the watershed between the Caspian sea and the Persian gulf. II. A range in Asia Minor, to the N. W. of Angora, extending between the Ishik Dagh on the N. E. and the valley of the Sakaria on the S. and "W. ALAGOAS, Dos, a province of Brazil, on the At- lantic coast, bounded N". and W. by Pernambu- co, and separated from Sergipe on the S. by the San Francisco river ; area about 11,000 sq. m. ; pop. about 300,000, of whom 50,000 are slaves. A considerable portion of its surface is covered with mountains, at the base of which the land is very fertile. The mountains afford large quantities of timber for export, and in the val- leys cotton and sugar are cultivated. Tropical fruits of all kinds are grown in abundance, and dragon's blood, mastic, ipecacuanha, copaiba, caoutchouc, &c., are obtained in the woods. The climate is warm and hurnid, and in the rainy season oppressive. The population is very un- equally distributed, the lowlands being most densely peopled. Some of the native tribes still live in the mountains, and subsist by the chase. The principal occupation of the people is agri- culture. Porto Calvo is the capital ; Macayo or Maceio the chief seaport. Alagoaa, the former capital, is situated on a lake opening into the ocean, 150 S. S. W. of Pernambuco; pop. about 12,000. There are several convents and grammar schools. ALAIN DE LILLE (Lat. Alanus de Imulis a Cistercian scholar, born in 1114, died about 1203. Ke was called the Universal Doctor, and was one of the most profound savants of the 12th century. He was a philosopher, physi- cist, theologian, poet, and historian, and was appointed to the bishopric either of Auxerre or of Canterbury, which he soon resigned in order to enter the monastery of Clteaux. Five countries dispute the honor of his birth, Germany, Scotland, Spain, Sicily, and Flan- ders. He himself says he came from Lille in Flanders. He wrote, principally in verse, on alchemy, natural philosophy, doctrinal and moral theology, &c. ALAIS, a city of S. France, department of Gard, on the Gardon, 25 m. N. N. W. of Ntmes; pop. in 1866, 19,964. There are nu- merous iron furnaces, silk mills, and glass works; and coal is mined in the vicinity to the extent of 1,000,000 tons annually. It is a great depot of the raw silk of S. France. ALAJUELA, a city of Costa Eica, Central America, 14 m. N. W. of San Jos6, the capital; pop., including suburbs, about 10,000. It is a place of considerable commercial importance, and is connected with the port of Puntas Are- nas, on the gulf of Nicoya, by an excellent mule road. 1LAMAN, Lucas, a Mexican statesman, born in the latter part of the 18th century, died June 2, 1855. He was a member of the cabinet under Bustamente in 1829, and in 1853 Santa Anna appointed him minister for foreign af- fairs. He induced Santa Anna to decree the abolition of the liberty of the press, with se- vere punishments for the infraction of the new law on this subject, the restoration of the con- fiscated property of the Jesuits, a regular re- cruiting system, and a reorganization in the army. By his influence onerous taxes were im- posed upon the impoverished population, and a law was passed for cashiering all Mexican offi- cers who had voluntarily surrendered to the American government. He was the author of Historic*, de Mejico (5 vols., Mexico, 1849-'52). ALAMANCE, a N. county of North Carolina ; area, 500 sq. m.; pop. in 1870, 11,874, of whom 3,640 were colored. The river Haw, a branch of the Cape Fear, runs through the centre of the county, and through the W. part Alamance creek flows into the Haw. The soil is fertile and the surface undulating. The productions